Her Darkest Fears
by articcat621
Summary: Hermione's deepest fear comes true.


A/N: Inspired by Prompt 89: It has to be a boggart. This isn't real. It can't really be happening. But then why isn't Riddikulus working? Written for HP Horror Fest 2015. I'd like to thank jenniseiblack, stronghermione1 , and KyrieColors for their wonderful help with this. I hope everyone enjoys this. xx

Warnings: Alternate Universe, Torture/Violence, Angst, Pregnancy.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

* * *

 **Her Darkest Fears**

Hermione raised her wand, her hand shaking uncontrollably. Her eyes widened in fear at the image before her. It had to be a boggart.

The man in her home stood in tattered Azkaban robes that were nearly falling off. His skin was pale – nearly translucent. He was all skin and bone. The cheeks on his face were sunken in deeply and his eyes were hollow. There was no light in his once-vibrant green eyes. His hair fell around his shoulders dirty and matted in knots. A smirk crossed his face, showing his yellowed cracked teeth.

This wasn't real… There was no way this was really happening.

There was no way Rodolphus Lestrange was in her living room. He was in Azkaban – rotting in there for life. This just wasn't him. It couldn't be.

" _Riddikulus_ ," Hermione spoke, her voice shaking as she said the spell.

The form grinned as he watched her pitiful attempt.

Why wasn't the Riddikulus spell working? She had imagined him in a humourous situation as she had cast the spell. Why wasn't it working?

The boggart lifted a wand – _wait, did boggarts even have wands?_ – and cast a spell. Hermione was too stunned to even react. Boggarts couldn't cast spells! It didn't make sense. Her eyes widened when she realized she didn't have time to cast a Protego charm.

"Hermione!" Rabastan ran into the room, throwing up a shield. He stopped the curse that was aimed at her. "Snap out of it," he hissed, positioning himself protectively in front of her.

"Riddikulus wouldn't work," Hermione whispered, her body trembling as she spoke. "Why wouldn't it work?"

"Why would it?" Rabastan countered, not taking his eyes off his brother. "Hermione, what were you thinking? He almost just killed you."

Rodolphus let out a cackle.

"But he's a boggart," she whispered, shaking her head. "Rabastan, he has to be. There's no way it's really him."

Rodolphus laughed even more. "Oh, no, it's really me. I broke out of Azkaban this morning." He leered at them both. "I wanted to pay a visit to my blood-traitor brother and his Mudblood whore."

Hermione closed her eyes. "No, no. It's not real. Rab, tell me it's not real."

"Leave now, brother, or I will kill you," Rabastan growled. No matter how much he hated him, Rodolphus was still his brother. He wouldn't kill him unless he had to.

"No," Rodolphus replied, casting two stunning spells in quick succession. Rabastan blocked one spell, but the other one hit Hermione in the shoulder. She cried out in pain as she stumbled backwards.

"Is that real enough for you, Mudblood?" Rodolphus hissed, watching her stumble as she tried to get back up.

"What are you doing here?" Rabastan snapped angrily. "You're not welcome here, and the Aurors are on their way."

Rodolphus let out a laugh. "Not welcomed? The Aurors? Is that supposed to frighten me?" He leered at them, taking a few steps forward. "Nothing frightens me anymore, little brother."

Hermione recovered her wits. " _Incarcerous_!" she shouted, pointing her wand at Rodolphus. He dodged her attack, sending one in return. Hermione was ready this time, blocking it with ease.

"Hermione, you need to get out of here," Rabastan whispered to her, moving closer to her. "It's not safe."

"I won't leave you," she replied, firmly standing at his side. "Not while this scum is in our home."

"But…" Rabastan glanced towards at her stomach.

"You impregnated a Mudblood?" Rodolphus asked disgustedly before cackling – sounding much like Bellatrix did before her death. His time in Azkaban had obviously worn down whatever was left of his mind. He was blatantly insane.

"Say good-bye to your Mudblood, Rabby, because I'm going to kill her and your unborn child, and then I'm going to kill you. But first, I'm going to have a little fun." Rodolphus brandished his wand, sending the Cruciatus curse at Hermione.

It hit her and she fell to the floor in pain. She writhed and screamed as the extreme pain wracked her body. It was so intense that she couldn't even think. It was as though white-hot knives were piercing every inch of her skin, and she felt as if her head would burst.

The pain suddenly stopped. She gasped for breath, her hands going around her middle. She curled in on herself, trying to protect her baby. Rabastan shouted in the background, and she heard an explosion. Something hit the back of her head and Hermione knew no more, as blackness filled her vision.

* * *

Hermione groggily opened her eyes. Looking around, she saw she was in a white room and was wearing a hospital gown. Hermione could guess she was in St. Mungo's.

"Hermione!" Rabastan shouted, rushing over. "Fuck, Hermione." He took her hand and squeezed it. "I… I thought the worse. I thought I had lost you."

"What happened?" she asked. "Rodolphus?"

"Dead," Rabastan responded flatly. "I killed him moments before Harry arrived with the Aurors. He… I thought he killed you."

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look. "You did what you had to, Rab. I still don't even understand how he got out of Azkaban. I thought he was due to receive the kiss."

"He was," a voice spoke from the doorway.

"Kingsley," Hermione said, surprised to see the Minister standing there. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to apologize for what happened to the both of you." Kingsley frowned. "When I heard that he had escaped, I was coming to warn you, but it was too late. He should have never escaped in the first place, and both I and the Ministry apologize."

"It's not your fault, Kingsley," Hermione said gently. She had known Kingsley since their time during the war and knew that he must feel terrible about what had happened. Kingsley had been very supportive of her relationship with Rabastan, as the two of them were the ones to present the proof of Rabastan's innocence to the Wizengamot. "Do you know how he escaped so it doesn't happen again with any other prisoners?"

"Unfortunately, Hermione, at this time we don't know how he managed it," Kingsley answered with a frown.

"There will be an investigation?" Rabastan asked with a slight edge to his voice. Despite having a good relationship with the Minister, his wife was hurt because of some mishap. He wanted to be sure it would not happen again.

"Of course, and the Ministry shall pay for your hospital bill and the damage to your home. If you need anything else, please don't hesitate to ask." He gave them both a smile before departing.

"Is the baby all right?" Hermione asked, looking at Rabastan. She held her breath as she waited for his response.

"Fine," Rabastan responded. "No lasting damage to her or you. Both of my witches are okay."

"Thank Merlin," Hermione whispered, tears in her eyes. "Rab, I don't know what came over me. It's like I froze. I couldn't think or move, the fear overtook me."

"Your reaction was completely understandable, sweetheart. I received Kingsley's Patronus and ran into the living room, but it was too late. He was already there attacking you."

"I… I thought he was a boggart. I just…" she sighed. "I couldn't even consider that he was really there. I was just so sure it was a boggart."

"Is he your worst fear?" Rabastan asked.

"In a way." She looked at him, giving him a weak smile. "My worst fear is of the two of us being torn apart. Your brother is one person who could have really made that happen."

"Hermione, sweetheart, I love you," Rabastan said, leaning forward to give her a kiss. "Nothing will ever tear us apart, okay? You needn't worry."

Hermione bit down on her lower lip. "Our child could have died because of my stupidity. I just didn't even expect that he could really be there. I let my guard down, Rab."

"Please don't beat yourself up over this, Hermione. The war is over. Neither of us were expecting him to break out. And you should not have to worry about letting your guard down in your own home."

She sniffed. "Will you forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive." He kissed her once more. "You're just being overly emotional, love. I can understand why you thought he was a boggart. You panicked when the spell wasn't working. That's understandable, Hermione. A lot of people would have had that reaction."

"But—"

"No buts," Rabastan said gently. "Why don't you get some more rest? Sleep is the only thing that'll help with the pain."

Hermione winced as she got herself more comfortable. She closed her eyes and listened to the sound of Rabastan's steady breathing next to her. However, try as she might, she just couldn't fall asleep. It had been a trying day – much more action packed than she could have ever anticipated.

But her mind just wouldn't stop. Thoughts continuously ran through her head, each one leaving her more and more uncomfortable.

Despite the fact that Rodolphus was now dead, Hermione found she was more afraid of encountering a boggart now than she had been before.

Hermione now knew the world was full of much darker things than a bad grade.


End file.
